Nairobi United head coach Nicholas Muyoti is bullish that his charges can secure all three points against Tusker when the two teams meet today at St Sebastian Park in Murang’a.
Naibois head into the fixture desperate to get back to winning ways after enduring a three-game winless run. Their previous three outings have yielded back-to-back defeats against Mathare United (1-0) and Posta Rangers (2-0).
In their most recent outing, they played to a 1-1 stalemate against Murang’a Seal, where Michael Karamor had fired Nairobi United into the lead in the first half, only for Seal’s Joe Waithira to strike back after the break, forcing both sides to settle for a share of the spoils.
Nairobi United have so far amassed 13 points from nine matches in their 2025/26 SportPesa League campaign, a return that leaves room for improvement as the season gathers pace.
Tusker, meanwhile, arrive flying high, sitting pretty on 21 points from 13 league outings.
Despite their recent tough patch, Muyoti is banking on his side’s preparations to deliver maximum points against the Brewers. “I am counting on our preparations, and in our next match we will try as much as possible to punish our opponents,” Muyoti said.
However, the tactician is under no illusions about the size of the task awaiting his side.
“Tusker is a good team. So far, we have seen their performance. In their previous match, they managed to score twice and keep a clean sheet,” he noted.
In their last league outing on Sunday, Tusker were 2-0 triumphant over Sofapaka, with Ian Simiyu grabbing a brace to underline their cutting edge.
That result extended their fine run of form, having previously secured two straight victories where they edged Mara Sugar and Ulinzi Stars by identical 1-0 scorelines.
Muyoti insists he knows exactly what his team will be up against but believes his players will rise to the occasion. “We know what we are going to face. It’s going to be a tough one, but my boys are well prepared,” he said.
Further, the Naibois will look to draw inspiration from the stalemate against Murang’a Seal, a result that helped steady the ship. “Our last game, the draw added a little more confidence to the team because we were coming off a loss,” Muyoti explained. “I believe we can build on that draw and make sure we get something out of Tusker,” he added.
The coach also pointed to Karamor’s goal as a key confidence booster in the dressing room.
“The goals were not coming, but Karamor showed us that we can score. We were creating chances but not scoring,” he said.
“I just hope in our next match we can try as much as possible to create chances and convert them,” he added
Muyoti is also prepared to shuffle the pack as he searches for a winning formula.
“We have not won in a long time, so we need to try new players to see if we can get the win,” Muyoti added.
A major concern for the tactician remains his side’s lapses in concentration, errors that have proved costly in recent matches.
“We must avoid those mistakes because in the past three matches we have made simple mistakes and we have been punished,” he warned.
He also highlighted the need for greater ruthlessness in the final third.
“We are pressing high, but we are not punishing the opponent. We are getting good transitions which we can score goals from, but we are not doing that,” he said.
by TEDDY MULEI
